Process for manufacturing a wool substitute from cellulose and similar solutions



P. H. MINCK. PROCESS FIOR MANUFACTURING A WOOL SUBSTITUTE FROM CELLULOSE AND SIMILAR SOLUTIONS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY I6. IQIS.

Patented July 5, 1921.

@t/IM /btozfn j@ @7% vwamtoz PAUL HERMANN MINCK, OF IPETRSDORF, GERMANY ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO THE CHEMICAL FOUNDATION, INC., A CORPORATION 0F DELAWARE.

PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING A`WO0L SUBSTITUTE FROM CELLULOSE AND SIMILAIR- SOLUTIONS.

Application filed-May 16,

To all whom it may concer/n Be it known that I, PAUL HERMANN MINCK, a citizen of the free city of Hamburg, residing at Petersdorf, Riesengebirge, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes for Manufacturing a Wool Substitute from Cellulose and Similar Solutions, for which I have filed applications in Germany, July 14, 1917 Austria, J an. 4;, 1918; Hungary, March 2, 1918; Sweden, May 28, 1918; Denmark, June 19, 1918; Norway, June 24, 1918; Finland, Aug. 20, 1918, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The known methods' of manufacturing arti'ficial thread from cellulose solutions aim principally to produce a smooth thread having a high loss. This problem is discussed in almost al specifications relating thereto and suitable'methods for securing artificial threads having these properties, commonly called artificial silk, are given.

There are some methods which have for an object the preparation of articial threads having a dull finish, or to dull the gloss of threads previously produced. To accomplish this object it has been proposed to embody lead, or zinc salts within the thread or to employ a spinning bath which contains extremely large quantities of sodium salts. If, indeed, these methods bring about a softening of the gloss, nevertheless a product is obtained, which, as regards its smoothness, is equal to artificial silk. Such treatment of the threads furthermore representsv an increase in the manufacturing costs, and when metal salts are employed, objections may arise from a hygienic point of View in case the fabrics woven therefrom shall be used for clothing purposes. These means have, infr fact, been proposed only for p'roducing a substitute for hair.

Aln consequence of the scarceness of wool and cotton there hasarisen the necessity of producing a substitute from raw materials which are available in considerablequantities, Previously artificial silk lwas exclusively made by dissolving cotton. In recent years, however, it has been found possible to make a good product with a high vgloss from wood cellulose. This product therefore may be made in any desired quantity from native raw materials. Furthermore, thewaste in the manufacture of artificial silk has been Specification of Letters Patent.

'as a substitute for wool.

Patented VJuly 5, 1921.

1919. serial No. 297,711.

cut, carded and spun to yarn, generallyk mixed with other fibers. But in all these cases the artificial silk had its characteristic smooth and glossy surface, and cannot serve The quantities available furthermore were naturally. very small and, owing to the extremely high manufacturing cost of artificial silk, such waste would not be intentionally. produced.

An object of the present invention is to produce a material, which possesses to a high degree the properties of sheeps wool and is particularly suited for making knitting yarn. The wool substitute produced in accordance with the present process possesses the soft gloss of the best kinds of wool, is as soft and voluminous as wool, and is, when spun to yarn,vat least as stron and well Wearing as real wool. The knitting yarn made therefrom will become. after washing still softer, whereas real wool inclines to felting.- Lastly it is possible to keep the manufacturing cost of the wool substitute below that of good wool.-

The new process emplo s preferably solutions of wood cellulose wood pulp) made according to known methods and spun into threads.

In manufacturing artificial silk the thread is squirted out of spinning nozzles with from about 10 to 30 orifices into the precipitating bath and is wound onto bobbins of a moderatesize. It is further necessary to maintain a uniform tension on the thread during the removal of the solvent and the washing and drying of the spun material, as the thread will receive the characteristic gloss and the required strength only if the tension occurring during these operations is fully maintained. Furthermore it is necessary for the freshly spun thread to be wound upon small cylindrical bodies having solid surfaces in order to prevent tangling of the fine primary threads and to render Y it possible to rewind them for 'twining into. the precipitating bath and wound upon large reels of 1200 millimeters and more circumference. A single spinning head can, by such means, produce in 24 hours 20 kilos of spun material and more, while in the manufacture of artificial silk the average output within the same time is only about 1 kilo. The layers of yarn wound upon the reels are drawn oii ,from time totime and freed in a single operation from all Solvent and spinning bath chemicals, so that the subsequent drying will yield a finished product, which may be treated further the same as real wool.

n essential feature of the present invention lies in `the further treatment of the layers of yarn wound upon the large reels, the individual threads of which consist of several hundred single threads. To dissolve fore a slight tension must be maintained, in

order to obtain a strong thread with a soft, woollike gloss. It has been found that the proper tension will be secured when the ora solution of suitable chemicals.

strands are freed from all chemicals by dripping or washing baths containing waiter he kinetic energy of the dripping baths will keep the suspended strand under a tension, which will counteract the contraction of the threads, due to the extraction of the chemicals, .to such an extent that a strong yarn is produced. This tension will not, however, become so great that a product is produced which has the appearance of artificial silk. The yarn produced will, on the contrary, attain by such treatment exactly the same qualities which characterize sheeps wool and will be excellently suited to serve as a substitute for wool.

In the accompanying drawing there is shown, diagrammatically, an illustrative embodiment of an apparatus, 'by means of which the process of the invention may be carried out, and therein,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a series of dripping baths, said elevation being partlyv in plan; and l Fig. 2 is a plan view of an end of a dri ping bath showing the arrangement of t e rolls and the placing of the yarn thereon.

In the drawing there-is shown only that portion of the process embodying the novel features pertaining to the removal of the chemicals from the produced yarn under a tension acquired from the kinetic energy of a dripping liquid.

reservoir containing water, or a solution of chemicals suitable to remove those ad hering to the yarn, is positioned immediately above the receiving receptacle 5 which is provided with an outlet 6 at its base. Near the top of the side walls of said receptacle there are positioned carrying rolls 8 by means of which the yarn 2 is carried through the appearances and characteristics of real wool.

Furthermore the treatment described admits of an exceptionally short and economic operation. Dripping baths of any number may be disposed in series, the size and arrangement of said baths de ending on the capacity and peculiarities oi the dlssolying process employed in producing the spinning material. 'llhe freshly spun strands of yarn are conveyed by means of suitable conveyers through the whole series of dripping baths so that the yarn strands enter at the one end of the series of baths and are delivered -at the other end, freed from all chemicals, as a spun yarn of pure cellulose with the desired wool features.

li claim:

l. A process for the manufacture of a wool substitute which comprises dissolving cellulose, squirting the cellulose solution through` a spinning nozzle into a precipltating bath, and removing the chemicals from the formed thread by passing said thread through a dripping bath under a tension produced by the kinetic energy of the falling bath liquid.

2'. process for the manufacture of a wool substitute which comprises dissolving cellulose, 'squirting the cellulose solution through a spinning nozzle into a precipitat-` ing bath, winding the produced. yarn upon reels, and removing the chemicals from the' formed thread -by passing said thread throughv a dripping bath under a tension produced by the kinetic energy of the falling bath liquid.

3. A process for the manufacture of a wool substitute which comprises dissolving cellulose, squirting the cellulose solution through a spinning nozzle into a precipitating bath, winding the produced yarn upon woo] substitute which comprises dissolving cellulose, squirting the cellulose solution through a spinning nozzle having a largle number of orifices into a precipitating bat winding the produced yarn upon reels having a circumference of about 1200 mm., and removing the chemicals from the formed thread b passing said 'thread through a plurality o dripping baths disposed in series under a tension produced by the kinetic en-n ergy ofthe falling bath liquid and finally drying.

5. In the process for the manufacture 'of a Wool substitute the step which consists in removing the precipitatin bath chemicals from yarn by passing sai yarn through' a dripping bath under a tension produced by the kinetic energy of the falling bath liquid.

6. In the process for the manufacture of a Wool substitute'the step which consists in removing the precipitating bath chemicals form yarn by passing said yarn through a plurality of dripping baths disposed in series underl a tension produced by the kinetic energy of the falling bath liquid.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature in resence of two Witnesses.

` P UL HERMANN MIN-CK. Witnesses:`

KARL MARLIN PAUL KLUGG, JOHANNA MARGARETHE PoLUDNIoK. 

